Last week we started a series exploring how to build a healthy culture when I unpacked a few principles from Jon Gordon.  This week we will dive deeper into this idea of building a healthy culture by unpacking a few principles from The Advantage by author and team health expert Patrick Lencioni.

In working with various leaders, I have found one of the challenges they face is gaining clarity.  In her book Dare to Lead Brene Brown states:  “Clear is kind.  Unclear is unkind.”  This idea is in direct alignment with Lencioni’s principles.  Lencioni provides a deeper understanding of how a cohesive leadership team will create clarity and that is what we will explore here.

Creating Clarity

“Creating clarity – is all about achieving alignment.”

Patrick Lencioni

Not long ago I watched the movie Boys in The Boat.  This is a movie about a college rowing team who won the gold medal in the 1936 Berlin Olympics.  While watching, I saw a living illustration of this idea.

In order to be successful as a member of a crew team everyone must be in alignment.  For a rowing team to accomplish this a coxswain communicates when and how to row.  As a leader, your job is to create clarity on where the team is going and get everyone rowing together.  When team members see where the team is headed and their role in that process, they have clarity.

Overcommunicating Clarity

“Great leaders see themselves as Chief Reminding Officers as much as anything else.”

Patrick Lencioni

Vision is like a faucet.  Sometimes it leaks.  Amidst the whirlwind of daily activity people easily forget why they are doing what they do.  In order to develop a healthy culture, the leader must continually communicate the vision of why things are being done.

As a leader you can communicate the vision through one on one conversations, regular group meetings, and visual reminders.  Another great way to remind people of the core reason why your team does what they do is sharing stories that illustrate how someone’s work has helped accomplish the team’s why.  It may feel like you are saying the same thing over and over, but maintaining clarity requires this kind of overcommunication.

Reinforcing Clarity

“Human systems give an organization a structure for tying its operations, culture, and management together, even when leaders aren’t around to remind people.”

Patrick Lencioni

Maybe you have heard the phrase:  “inspect what you expect.”  Remember when you were in school, if you knew there was a test on something you paid more attention to it.  If there was a consequence for a specific behavior, you probably tried to avoid it.  Systems help reinforce the culture.

For example, I once had a client whose internal policy was to keep doors shut when they were working in the office.  This reinforced the leader’s cultural value of productivity since a lot of their work was done on the phone.  On the other hand, I have seen other organizations with wide open spaces and few traditional offices supporting the idea of collaboration.  This is just one example of how a structure or expectation reinforces cultural norms.

What about your culture?  Do people have clarity about what is expected in your organization?  Are there systems in place that reinforce the culture?  Are you interested in getting an objective look at your culture?  Contact me to learn about The Maxwell Leadership Game to help you assess your team and open up communication to gain clarity on areas for growth.  Keep gaining clarity.  Lead Well!

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